| |
| |
| Challenges : Safety, operations & cost |
| Record earnings were achieved for the second year in a row. This was attributable to very high
metal prices and was achieved in a year characterised by significant challenges in terms of
safety, operations and costs. |
| |
Very good progress was made on transformation with the announcement in September
of two transactions and an employee share ownership plan.
Our projects have generally proceeded on plan and on budget. Once
again, the year's earnings will be fully distributed to shareholders, with a
total dividend distribution for 2007 of 5,200 cents per share. |
|
|
| We take this opportunity to thank all our employees for their contributions to the Company |
 during this demanding year. |
Norman Mbazima & Duncan Wanbload
Joint Acting Chief Executive Officers |
| |
| Safety |
It is with deep regret that we inform shareholders that 25 employees lost their lives at managed operations and four
at non-managed joint venture operations in 2007. We extend our sincere condolences to their families, friends and
colleagues. This was a significant deterioration compared to 2006 and safe production remains the single most
important item on management's agenda.
Sixteen of these fatalities occurred at Rustenburg Section, 12 of which occurred in the first half of the year. In
response to this unacceptable performance, staggered closure of the Rustenburg operations was effected over five
weeks to address the situation. Activities conducted during the closure included intensive dialogue between
management, employees at all levels and the unions to heighten safety awareness and reaffirm the Company's
commitment to reducing injuries. In addition, full safety inspections were carried out and remedial measures
taken where our exacting standards had not been fully complied with. In contrast, the process division and
Potgietersrust Mine (which has been renamed Mogalakwena Section) delivered fatality-free performances for the
second consecutive year. |
|
 Our performance in terms of reportable injuries at managed operations
improved on the previous year with 485 injuries reported compared to 819
in 2006. The lost-time injury frequency rate improved to 2.03 from 2.52 the
previous year.
We have developed a comprehensive and enhanced safety improvement plan
which will be implemented over three years from 2008. The core themes of
this plan are aligned values; effective leadership; communication; caring and
connectivity; and systems.
There are detailed focus areas underpinning each core theme, which are
discussed in the Sustainable Development Report. We are con?dent that this
will lead to a significant improvement in our safety record. |
| |
| Sustainable development |
Our involvement with communities in the areas in which we operate remains vital. During the year, a dedicated
community engagement structure was established to efficiently engage community issues in a focused and dedicated
manner. Some R126 million was invested in host communities spanning infrastructure, education, health and welfare,
community capacity-building and the development of small, medium and micro-enterprises.
The relocation of Ga-Sekhaolelo and Ga-Puka residents to the new Motlhotlo village is progressing well with 640
families having moved by the date of this report. We are very pleased to report the excellent cooperation of all
stakeholders in this relocation, including residents, community leaders and local and provincial governments. The
remaining 317 families are scheduled to move during the remainder of 2008. The total cost of this relocation is
R690 million.
We have continued to focus on employee health issues, both at places of work and within the broader community
where our employees reside. There was a tremendous response from employees to the HIV/AIDS voluntary
counselling and testing campaign conducted during the year. Some 36,000 employees were tested, more than 70%
of the enrolled workforce. This will help our people who are HIV positive to receive the necessary treatment and
encourage those who are negative to remain healthy. |
| |
| Our leadership team |
During the year Ralph Havenstein resigned as chief executive officer, and Roeland van Kerckhoven, Robin Mills and
Mike Halhead retired. They were respectively executive directors responsible for business development and services,
mining and process. We thank them for their considerable contributions over many years of service to Anglo
Platinum.
We welcomed on to the Executive Committee Pieter Louw as executive head - mining, July Ndlovu as executive
head - processing, and Mary-Jane Morifi as executive head - corporate affairs. In view of the acting duties we assumed
following Ralph's resignation, Martin Prinsloo, Simon Scott and Sean Chelius assisted the Executive Committee with
responsibilities for corporate finance, financial services and projects and engineering respectively.
The continuation of the favourable commodity markets and the increase in construction activity in South Africa have
reinforced the importance of recruiting and retaining leadership skills. We are, therefore, very pleased to have
attracted and retained these skills in the Executive Committee. |
| |
| The markets |
Platinum group metals (PGM) markets remained buoyant throughout the year, driven by increased demand in
autocatalysts and supply constraints among the major producers. Demand from the jewellery sector was surprisingly
resilient despite a considerable increase in the price of platinum. Demand increased by 3% over the year.
Ruthenium made a significant contribution to our profits as the price rally that began late in 2006 continued during
the year. This demand arose from new uses for the metal in hard disk drives, and resulted in an increase of 158% in
our realised price for the metal.
Also notable was the improvement in nickel prices which reflected the strength of all base metals during the year.
As a result, the basket price (total revenue for all products per ounce of platinum sold), increased by 31% from R13,852 in 2006 to R18,167 in 2007. This price increase, offset by lower sales volumes, resulted in gross sales revenue of R47.0 billion, up 19% on 2006. |
|
 We continued our market support for jewellery through the Platinum Guild International (PGI), research into new
uses for the minor PGMs, and further investment into fuel cells. These activities will help develop the long-term market
for PGMs and enable us to realise our strategy of growing our production on the back of the increased demand.
RBMR tank house
Although there are signs of a downturn in the global economy following expectations of recession in the United
States, we believe the outlook for PGMs in 2008 remains positive. This view is based on a tight market at the beginning
of the year, especially for platinum and rhodium, a gradual stabilisation in supply following the difficulties of 2007, and
robust demand in the auto sector. |
|
|
|
|
|
